SURVEY NO. 4
Do you recall being interested in the alphabet at an early age, if so what age? As a very, very young child I was interested more in the shapes of the blocks of text on a page than I was in the pictures. I began to a self-motivated quest to read at the age of two, when I chose the smallest bit of text on a page (the word “to”) and asked my Mom “What does this say?” All of my childhood books had the text blocks outlined, mostly in purple crayon.
Do you recall being interested in penmanship at an early age, if so what age? This is hard to remember, but I’m lucky in that my father kept tons of our childhood art and writing, all carefully dated. So I can tell you that at 4 1/2 years old I had shown enough interest to write readable print (though it tended to angle down the page a little). That’s the age at which I wrote my first story, in which an Indian boy got left behind a bit on the way to a “family reunion” (I didn’t know the word powwow, but that’s what I was imagining), faced off with a polar bear, won, cured the meat, made gifts from the fur for his entire family, and arrived a little late to the gathering bearing the meat and specific presents—fur moccasins, a hat, leather dresses…..
Do you recall being interested in calligraphy at an early age, if so what age? When I was in 6th grade or so, my parents visited an art store that was going out of business, and bought the ubiquitous Schaeffer three-nib bladder-style fountain pen calligraphy set and an Abraham Lincoln Italic workbook at a steep discount, on the assumption that I would love it because I loved art and words and word art on signs and book covers. They were right.
Was there a person or a book you ran across that had a big influence on your path? Well, I was a socially marginalized child, but the lettering got me some rare positive attention from my peers. And once, calling the company at the back of the Abraham Lincoln workbook to see if I could get a question answered, I was surprised to have Mr. Lincoln himself pick up the phone; that was a thrill to my young self, and he was very kind and encouraging. I grew up in a small town with a small library and no calligraphy books, so I was in college before I ever saw anything but that Lincoln workbook—but the first book I checked out from the college library on calligraphy was _More Than Fine Writing: The Life and Calligraphy of Irene Wellington._ I checked it out every couple of months or so and just soaked in the beautiful work. It was a huge volume, so gorgeous.
Did you discover lettering/penmanship/calligraphy at a much later age? I have discovered things I wasn’t aware of…like a calligraphy guild, international calligraphy conferences, and the Graceful Envelope contest. I’m in my 50s and discovered those three things within the past decade.
What do you enjoy most about writing? By writing you mean calligraphy (I’m also a writer). I love the variation and beauty of letterforms, and the ability to create something beautiful out of personally meaningful words.
What do you find most frustrating about writing? Well, after many, many years of mothering, when it was hard to find time, I’m frustrated at the loss of skills I notice, and the withered state of my creativity! I wish I’d had access to more resources earlier, too, but that’s not something I can correct.
Do you have a specific goal? Not really—I set small goals, and I want to progress, but my goals shift and change with my opportunities and circumstances. (I have a wide, wide range of interests, and while calligraphy has been a long-lived one, I still am distracted by music and kayaking and growing green things and animals and reading and writing and neuroscience and anthropology and bones and Facebook and getting together for lunch with friends….My sibs and I were raised on classical music and they have all gone on to be more or less involved in the musical theater and opera world—principals to chorus—but I never had the narrow, focused drive that the three of them did, not for music or for anything.)
Do you recall being interested in the alphabet at an early age, if so what age? As a very, very young child I was interested more in the shapes of the blocks of text on a page than I was in the pictures. I began to a self-motivated quest to read at the age of two, when I chose the smallest bit of text on a page (the word “to”) and asked my Mom “What does this say?” All of my childhood books had the text blocks outlined, mostly in purple crayon.
Do you recall being interested in penmanship at an early age, if so what age? This is hard to remember, but I’m lucky in that my father kept tons of our childhood art and writing, all carefully dated. So I can tell you that at 4 1/2 years old I had shown enough interest to write readable print (though it tended to angle down the page a little). That’s the age at which I wrote my first story, in which an Indian boy got left behind a bit on the way to a “family reunion” (I didn’t know the word powwow, but that’s what I was imagining), faced off with a polar bear, won, cured the meat, made gifts from the fur for his entire family, and arrived a little late to the gathering bearing the meat and specific presents—fur moccasins, a hat, leather dresses…..
Do you recall being interested in calligraphy at an early age, if so what age? When I was in 6th grade or so, my parents visited an art store that was going out of business, and bought the ubiquitous Schaeffer three-nib bladder-style fountain pen calligraphy set and an Abraham Lincoln Italic workbook at a steep discount, on the assumption that I would love it because I loved art and words and word art on signs and book covers. They were right.
Was there a person or a book you ran across that had a big influence on your path? Well, I was a socially marginalized child, but the lettering got me some rare positive attention from my peers. And once, calling the company at the back of the Abraham Lincoln workbook to see if I could get a question answered, I was surprised to have Mr. Lincoln himself pick up the phone; that was a thrill to my young self, and he was very kind and encouraging. I grew up in a small town with a small library and no calligraphy books, so I was in college before I ever saw anything but that Lincoln workbook—but the first book I checked out from the college library on calligraphy was _More Than Fine Writing: The Life and Calligraphy of Irene Wellington._ I checked it out every couple of months or so and just soaked in the beautiful work. It was a huge volume, so gorgeous.
Did you discover lettering/penmanship/calligraphy at a much later age? I have discovered things I wasn’t aware of…like a calligraphy guild, international calligraphy conferences, and the Graceful Envelope contest. I’m in my 50s and discovered those three things within the past decade.
What do you enjoy most about writing? By writing you mean calligraphy (I’m also a writer). I love the variation and beauty of letterforms, and the ability to create something beautiful out of personally meaningful words.
What do you find most frustrating about writing? Well, after many, many years of mothering, when it was hard to find time, I’m frustrated at the loss of skills I notice, and the withered state of my creativity! I wish I’d had access to more resources earlier, too, but that’s not something I can correct.
Do you have a specific goal? Not really—I set small goals, and I want to progress, but my goals shift and change with my opportunities and circumstances. (I have a wide, wide range of interests, and while calligraphy has been a long-lived one, I still am distracted by music and kayaking and growing green things and animals and reading and writing and neuroscience and anthropology and bones and Facebook and getting together for lunch with friends….My sibs and I were raised on classical music and they have all gone on to be more or less involved in the musical theater and opera world—principals to chorus—but I never had the narrow, focused drive that the three of them did, not for music or for anything.)
Can you describe any ah-ha moment where you discovered something that really helped with your journey? Yeah. I joined a calligraphy guild and got excited again-and then I found Hamid Ebrahimi’s Copperplate videos and overcame my fear of the pointed pen. Man, I love pointed-pen work. Also, lightboards and slantboards! I couldn’t find either one when I first read about them (no internet then, still living in small-town Idaho), but I improvised with a large piece of thick milk-white Plexi that I still use today. I rest the lower edge at the top of my thighs, with the back of the Plexi against the edge of my worktable, and put a small shop light behind it.
If you have taken classes, do you recall why you signed up for your first class? I haven’t taken classes, though I plan to take one this year once the style I want is taught in a time frame that works for me. I did get to go to my first workshop—essentially my first formal calligraphy training experience—early last year. I was in San Antonio (traveling partner to my mother-in-law who was visiting a new grandbaby) and contacted the local guild to see if there was a good place to shop for supplies. They invited me to their regular monthly meeting that Friday, and while at that meeting I was invited to attend the next day’s workshop (half of a two-day workshop for half price). I have a hard time attending workshops because I keep the Sabbath and the second day is always on Sunday; my own guild has never been able to offer a half-workshop. But apparently there had been a cancellation, and they figured they could fit me in. So my first formal instruction was from Resa Gettler, on Visigothic versals. (In the past year I’ve also taken an ampersand one-day workshop with Gemma Black, and met Carol DuBosch—it’s been a remarkable year for calligraphy for me!)
Have your classes met or exceeded your expectations? The workshops sure did! So inspiring and fun. Our most accessible local instructor, Dave Kuwahara, is (by all reports) and awesome teacher, so I have high hopes for taking from him, as well, sometime later this year.
Do youthink we all start with equal potential? No. Potential is related to interest, and not everyone starts with equal interest. Also, some people are more able to visualize not only the shapes of letters, but the shapes of counters and spaces; they can see both ways much more easily than others. There are other elements related to how one sees that factor in similarly. And a certain hand-eye translation is more or less pronounced in people, as well.
Why do you think some people catch on faster than others? Interest and drive is a big factor. How we see (as mentioned above) is as well. Another thing is the ability to relax; people who hold a lot of tension have a hard time.
Is anyone truly *hopeless* (at improving their penmanship)? Penmanship? I don’t think so. If they want to, they can, barring any physical problems such as tremors that interfere. A lot of people just don’t want to, or don’t want to enough to put in the time retraining their muscles.
SURVEY NO. 14
Do you recall being interested in the alphabet at an early age, if so what age? maybe age 6 when I began first grade (no kinder or preschool where I lived, and 60-plus years ago)
Do you recall being interested in penmanship at an early age, if so what age? oh yes, 4th grade, age 9 when I walked into my fourth grade classroom and saw those big green penmanship alphabet cards across the top of the blackboard (now I am hinting at my age)
Do you recall being interested in calligraphy at an early age, if so what age? age 9, see above answer
Was there a person or a book you ran across that had a big influence on your path? my 4th grade teacher, Mrs Green, who’s penmanship I longed to duplicate
Did you discover lettering/penmanship/calligraphy at a much later age? mid 30’s
What do you enjoy most about writing? just seeing the written words on paper opposed to typed, and such beautiful writing tools and papers
What do you find most frustrating about writing? how my penmanship is not as consistent as it was in my younger years
Do you have a specific goal? no, just have fun and give someone a bright spot with receiving a hand written/decorated envelope with a note
Can you describe any ah-ha moment where you discovered something that really helped with your journey? when I was taking a calligraphy class, practice every day made a huge difference
If you have taken classes, do you recall why you signed up for your first class? had always wanted to learn calligraphy and when I found an adult education class at my town recreation center, it was perfect timing with my responsibilities at home with raising my sons
Have your classes met or exceeded your expectations? yes
Do you think we all start with equal potential? I don’t think so; some people just do not have the dexterity to succeed in this; I think some degree of penmanship is warranted
Why do you think some people catch on faster than others? desire
Is anyone truly *hopeless* (at improving their penmanship)? no, everyone should at least be able to improve, whether they do is up to their willingness to truly want to and try.
Do you recall being interested in the alphabet at an early age, if so what age? maybe age 6 when I began first grade (no kinder or preschool where I lived, and 60-plus years ago)
Do you recall being interested in penmanship at an early age, if so what age? oh yes, 4th grade, age 9 when I walked into my fourth grade classroom and saw those big green penmanship alphabet cards across the top of the blackboard (now I am hinting at my age)
Do you recall being interested in calligraphy at an early age, if so what age? age 9, see above answer
Was there a person or a book you ran across that had a big influence on your path? my 4th grade teacher, Mrs Green, who’s penmanship I longed to duplicate
Did you discover lettering/penmanship/calligraphy at a much later age? mid 30’s
What do you enjoy most about writing? just seeing the written words on paper opposed to typed, and such beautiful writing tools and papers
What do you find most frustrating about writing? how my penmanship is not as consistent as it was in my younger years
Do you have a specific goal? no, just have fun and give someone a bright spot with receiving a hand written/decorated envelope with a note
Can you describe any ah-ha moment where you discovered something that really helped with your journey? when I was taking a calligraphy class, practice every day made a huge difference
If you have taken classes, do you recall why you signed up for your first class? had always wanted to learn calligraphy and when I found an adult education class at my town recreation center, it was perfect timing with my responsibilities at home with raising my sons
Have your classes met or exceeded your expectations? yes
Do you think we all start with equal potential? I don’t think so; some people just do not have the dexterity to succeed in this; I think some degree of penmanship is warranted
Why do you think some people catch on faster than others? desire
Is anyone truly *hopeless* (at improving their penmanship)? no, everyone should at least be able to improve, whether they do is up to their willingness to truly want to and try.
No comments:
Post a Comment